Old keeps coming!

Odd but I think my feet are growing. At least most of my shoes seem to have become borderline large enough. Guess it could be that all the walking, mash mash, mash mash, left right, left right, over all the many years carrying this overweight body just flattened them out in all directions. I've noticed a lot of more older folks become a lot less steady while walking or standing so it could just be nature's way of preparing me for that era of my life.

Another thing. I know that pains or a tightness in the chest is a thing that one should be concerned with and if it lingers should be checked out by a doctor. Well, all this walking has also dropped my chest way way low and it seems lots of times after I eat I have a tightness in that new chest area. Do you think that is something I should watch closely and worry about?

Dory is going to her weekly bridge binge leaving me here to care for the pets as we are bombarded, hour after hour, with loud steps, talking and singing in an unrecognizable language as the fellows continue to work on our ceilings and walls upstairs. I think Martin and Alex are both from south of the border. They are good workers and both seem to be happy and friendly. They gave me their names which wasn't exactly Martin and Alex but I think they shortened them to a USA version so, we the people, could say it. I told them that they should know I can speak Spanish. I said here I'll say it again, Spanish, which unfortunutly is the only word I know. Yeah I know, Ha Ha Ha, I'm a funny guy.

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I wish my name was Brian because maybe sometimes people would misspell my name and call me Brain. That's like a free compliment and you don't even gotta be smart to notice it.~Mitch Hedberg

Dentists!

Martha the sadistic gum ripper, was a little meaner than usual yesterday. She is a real nice lady if she could only contain her impulses. Maybe it's just she had a quarrel with her husband that morning? Anyway I think she knows that sitting in her chair raises my blood pressure which she tries to relieve by bleeding me out some.

I did tell her and the dentist how much an older man might miss out on was it not for eye glasses, false teeth, hearing aids and Viagra. The dentist asked me if that was the was the biggest four to which I replied, "no, they are just extras. There is only one really big one and that would be the medical profession's ability to contain a person blood pressure at a living level. This allows one to take advantage of the extras. Without that ability the extras would be unusable as someone sings a gospel or two and then another offers a eulogy.

I have been told that when one 'gives up the ship' or 'bites the dust' he leaves behind his spirit which is constituted of the memories in the minds of those acquaints of whom he has touched over the years. Depending how they were touched there might only remain memories of the remnants of your life.

Did you ever wonder why they put such solemn expressions on a corpse? I wonder why they don't tack a smile on or maybe just a smirk. After all, the deceased laying there has beaten all the lookers to the final destination. I've heard and read about people coming back from a near death experience. They all said it was so beautiful that they didn't even want to come back. Anyway, in my one opinion, no more problems and no more worry ought to leave a bit of a smile on there somewhere.

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No matter where you go or what you do, you live your entire life within the confines of your head.- Terry Josephson

April 27

Around 7:30 a.m. this morning five vehicles carrying eight guys appeared in our drive. Man, you talk about getting our ceilings textured and the walls painted I believe it will happed pretty quick. And...the sooner the better because we have same as lost our upstairs till they finish. The sounds they are making up there worries me some for I expect to see parts of the downstairs ceilings to become loosened and fall. That would be an expense way above and beyond our financial ability.

You know, one occupies a dwelling only temporarily and it will never be forever. One reason is death and that will come to us all so it is an unavoidable move. Another reason that pains me is the fact that even tho you have no monthly payments and think you own the place there is that yearly rental bill. Yep, you have got to pay rent to the government for the space where your ownership sits. If you become unable to make your rental payments you will be evicted and your ownership will be taken from you.

Not only that, but with every improvement that the assesor is able to see they raise your rent. I see this as a way to hurry you out of your ownership while leaving an improved and more valuable place on the rental space so the government can obtain a higher sale price when they sell it to the next owner-renter.

A dentist appointment today has me heading for Jeff and belive it or not, leaving Dory to baby sit our livestock Mikey and Tomi and be avalible to answer any questions that might be posed by one of the many intruders.

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"To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one's own in the midst of abundance." -Buddha

April 15

Ho'boy, the roofers got the shingles, skylight and TV antenna off the house yesterday and they worked late. Got 3/4 of the tar paper put down and told us they would be back at 7:00 A.M. to get on it again. With rain in the forecast for Friday I doubt they'll get the garage done this week.

Anyone need a good TV antenna with rotor?

Fishing from the dock is just as good as ever but the catching really sucks! Catching three yesterday in three casts caused me to waste an hour frothing the water with that lure. Even changed it out, once for a different color then again for a different type. Oh well, I'll giver'er another try today. Since it is only fourteen steps to the dock I may try again several times.

I'm kinda getting burned out on boneless crappie filets but I suppose if we were raising hogs and had all we could eat avalible I'd get burned out on pork steaks too..........Nah, I doubt that would ever happen, I really do like fried pork steak!

As they say, 'no news is good news', and I can imagine your thoughts, 'if I had deleted this without reading it would have been even better than good'.

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The whole problem with news on television comes down to this: all the words uttered in an hour of news coverage could be printed on a page of a newspaper. And the world cannot be understood in one page. — Neil Postman, USA

April 14

Went to the dock yesterday morning in hopes of catching lots of fish and ended up catching about 90 and 1/2 inches of crappie. I think that total came about with only two fish too. One was 10 1/2 inches long and the other one was right at eight. Eight is too short to keep so I threw it back only to catch and throw back what seemed to be the same fish nine more times. Tens times in all. I think that little rascal finally got enough not long before I did. One fish won't feed very many people. Who knows, I might catch a few more today.

Yesterday afternoon, after 09999999999999999999999909999999999999999 {the cat just walked across the keyboard} several days of saving I finally had a limit {15} in the basket. As I took them out of the basket to clean one flipped when I thought he was going to flop leaving me with only 14 to clean. What the heck, that's a good mess.

Today the roofer will be here to begin the re-roof job on the house. The garage y7uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu6" {cat just went across going the other direction} is next.

Meanwhile we have a trip to Eldon planned. Need to pick up some food stuff.

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The greatest part of our happiness depends on our dispositions, not our circumstances. ~Martha Washington

April 8

Yesterday I spent about 40 Minutes on the dock for 3 fish which is/was ridicules but I hung in there that long anyway. All the fish seem to be somewhere else except for the three strays that I was finally able to entice with my skill at retrieving a lure. Okay, so it doesn't take much skill to crank the handle but you need to do it just right, not too fast for the fish but fast enough to keep the lure above the brush.

The lake is so low that the lure can very readily find a limb or snag to grab on to if you should let your attention lag just a tad. My attention lagged a couple times but the spark plug with the safety pin attached saved my nine cent lure. I'm not sure but I think the safety pin may cost more than the lure and I have lost the pinned sparkplug and the lure both before. Ugg! Pennies add up!

Later this morning Dory will be heading to the city of Rocky Mount for her weekly day of playing bridge leaving Mikey, Tomi and I to a nice period of quiescence. Oh, Mikey and I may visit the dock in an attempt to bring a few more fish up despite yesterdays near failure.

So nothing to type again today huh? Isn't that strange?
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Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.~Henry David Thoreau

April 7

This wasn't the first time, and you would think I would learn, but this morning I once again was driven to my knees by a tiny tap to my elbow. Down there quick sweating and sopping. I must remember when carrying two full cups of coffee from the kitchen to the bedroom, keep the elbows tucked in! It is amazing how a person can carry full cups of anything without spilling a drop but let a third unwanted factor slip in and sloppy goes the game. It probably worked out for the better. Even tho I had said my morning prayers before alighting, finding myself on my knees seemed like an ideal position to pray again. I did add in a request during the prayer for forgiveness of some of the words that I had used right after the bumping/sloshing too.

A quick trip to Jeff yesterday. Had scheduled appointments for the skin doctor to look at all our wisdom spots and whatever. Things were okay all over and found out that it isn't necessary to visit there every three years. Just call if we think we have a problem.

Glenda had to check a store out at the mall so while there we had a quick lunch at the senior center and headed back.

Caught many Crappie yesterday but only 10 out of the bunch were long enough to keep. It might be that the big ones force the smaller ones into being scouts, so things size-wise could improve soon unless my turning the scouts loose causes a problem. I dropped one on the dock before pushing him back into the water. Can't help but wonder what that poor disoriented bruised thing might report to the school.
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The trouble with most people is that they think with their hopes or fears or wishes rather than with their minds.~Will Durant

April 5

Sad is a happening that can't always be avoided. You have got to accept a little sadness now and then. Accept it and go on about your business and it will trickle away with time. I've been a bit sad for a few days and it seems to want to linger some more. I can go on doing my business but part of my business is gone which creates the lingering I think.

Our 90 year old neighbor has moved to town where there aren't any steps for him to fall down as he did that one time where he was living here. I think that is really good for him but what is Buddy going to do? For over two years we've walked that old dog near every day. Now he'll just waste his days sitting at the end of his chain. We get to Eldon about once a week so my plans are to stop by and walk him around the block or somewhere. Hate to lead him on a leash but suppose that will be the only way.

One bright spot that ends up dark is the crappie fishing from our dock is going gung ho and that's bright! Darkness begins to creep in on about the 14th fish when the realization that they must be cleaned zonks you in the head. 15 fish is a day's limit but it takes longer to clean them than it does to catch the 15.

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"An expert is someone who knows more and more about less and less, until eventually he knows everything about nothing." -Anon

April #1 Fool

The beginning of another exciting day has engulfed us here with it's fiery beams slashing across the heavens as they prepare the sky for the arrival of the sun. The birds are all applauding the sight as they flap their little wings and sing happily and loudly, as if trying to alert all living creatures of this wondrous happening.

The truth of the matter is, 'red in the morning, sailors take warning', and rain is in the forecast for tomorrow. The little birds..........they're all out at first dawn strutting around, flapping their wings with nary a thought about the sun nor the new day. Just trying to entice a female to join him so they might together, succumb to the enjoyment of one of natures strongest instincts in an attempt to insure the continuance of their species. Or in the case of the starlings that are trying to nest in our Purple Martin house on the dock, their frigging species which also works for the frigging Sparrows who are doing the same thing.

I have a BB gun to scare off both frigging species and so far have pretty well shot the birdhouse up but haven't hit a bird yet so they keep coming back. It is down now that all I've got to do is open the door and they'll fly off but by the time I sit back down they're back. I guess I'll just let nature take it's course.

I see this as a waste of my time this morning on one hand then on the other I see it as a way to make know the fact you're on our minds. A way to let you know our wish that your day be as exciting as you want.

By the way, as you know some famous folks have a day named in their honor. Not famous, but me and others of my stripe have a special day too. Guess the day and get a free email from Dory.

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You cannot prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building nests in your hair. -Chinese Proverb